


To build a home

by soul_wanderer



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Adoption, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/F, Family Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Foster Care, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, OT3, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-01
Updated: 2017-12-30
Packaged: 2019-01-27 15:39:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12585104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soul_wanderer/pseuds/soul_wanderer
Summary: When Maggie sees the girls, sees how lost they are, she can't just leave them behind to fend for themselves and so she makes the decision to take them home with her, home to where Alex and Kara are already waiting for her with a lot of confusion and questions





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Based on a story idea from findinemo85 and written because I couldn't let go of it. I don't know how long this story will be, but while it has the potential for a lot more chapters I will be upfront about this and tell you that this will probably be only around two or three chapters long because I just don't have the time to write more. I mean, it can happen that I expand on this but I wouldn't want to make any promises and want you guys disappointed in the end.
> 
> Either way, enjoy reading and feedback is appreciated :)

_Lost and insecure_   
_You found me, you found me_

* * *

 

The moment Maggie caught onto what the girl was about to do, the moment she made eye contact with her she had already started running from the detective.

Maggie should have known this would happen, she was still in her uniform after all, and she heaved a little sigh before taking off and running after the girl that was quickly disappearing into one of the darker alleys near the main street.

Eventually she caught up to her, luckily Maggie was a fast runner, and she grabbed the girl by her shoulder and turned her around to see angry eyes staring back at her.

The girl was barely older than thirteen, her hair in a messy ponytail and her clothes dirty, giving away that she must have been on the streets for longer than a few days.

“Hey kid, what do you think you were doing back there?”, Maggie confronted the girl and nodded towards the sandwich in her hand that she had managed to grab before Maggie had caught her in the act.

“What do you think I was doing”, the girl hissed back, wanting nothing more than to be left alone again so she could go her own ways.

“How long have you been out there?”, Maggie’s voice softened a little, concern taking over as she saw how skinny the girl looked.

“That’s none of your business and why would you care anyway – are you gonna arrest me now?”, the girl bit back but then seemed to lose some of her bravado as she thought about the possible consequences of her actions.

“I’m not out to arrest you, kid. How about I buy you some real lunch, I was about to get something to eat anyway. I’m Maggie by the way, mind telling me your name?”, at this the girl seemed to relax a little before she said “Sarah”.

“Well, Sarah, let’s go then, shall we”, Maggie smiled but was stopped short when the girl almost shouted “Wait”, much to Maggie’s confusion.

“Could you-“, she hesitated, biting her lip for a moment before continuing “can you just wait here for a minute, I need to-“, the girl trailed off and gestured towards one of the alleys and Maggie still didn’t know what was going on but nodded, telling the girl that she would wait for her.

When the girl came back less than five minutes later, Maggie saw a small figure hiding behind her legs and it almost broke her heart when she saw that it was a little girl who could be no older than four or five.

For a moment Sarah looked at Maggie with uncertainty but Maggie just shot her a sad smile before bending down on one level with the girl hiding behind her legs.

“Hey there, I’m Maggie, you don’t need to be scared of me, I’m just here to help you. Do you want to tell me your name?”, Maggie’s voice was gentle and she waited until the girl was ready to talk to her.

“Lucy”, she eventually squeaked out and insecurely grabbed Sarah’s hand as she came to stand next to the older girl while still being pressed against her leg, clutching a torn and well-loved stuffed bunny against her chest.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Lucy, now how about we go get something to eat?”, Maggie knew that the prospect of food would get the girl’s attention and she smiled when Lucy’s eyes grew wide and lit up.

“Uh huh”, Lucy nodded and that’s all it took for Maggie to navigate them to the closest diner where they could all eat a proper meal.

Once they were all seated Maggie told the girls they could pick anything they wanted and Lucy just stared at her in disbelief before ordering a whole stack of pancakes while Maggie additionally ordered them milkshakes, sensing that they hadn’t had a real meal in far too long.

By the time they all had their food and were eating hungrily, Maggie softly spoke up again.

“So, where do you guys come from?”, the question was directed towards Sarah who solemnly looked down at her plate as she contemplated whether or not she could tell Maggie the truth.

“We’re from a group home but the people there didn’t really care about us, so I ran away. I took Lucy with me because she was the youngest and has been attached to me ever since she came to the group home almost two years ago.”, she quietly told Maggie who nodded at her, understanding her motives and seeing how much Sarah cared about the younger girl sitting next to her.

“Look, I won’t bring you back to your group home, but you can’t stay out there either, it’s not safe for you. So how about you come home with me for now until we find a more permanent solution”, Maggie proposed, hoping the girl would accept the offer so she wouldn’t have to turn her in.

“You have a boyfriend?”, Sarah reluctantly asked, barely meeting Maggie’s eyes as she did so and Maggie sensed that the girl must have had negative experiences with men in the past if she was asking her this.

“No boyfriend, but, well-“, Maggie paused, momentarily wondering how the girl would react to what she was about to tell her next, “I’m living with my two girlfriends”, she explained and Sarah looked up at her at that in surprise but didn’t make a comment so Maggie guessed that she didn’t have a problem with it either.

“Are they nice?”, Sarah just asked after a moment and Maggie smiled at that.

“Yeah, they’re really nice, I’m sure you’ll like them”, she took out her phone at that and showed them a picture of Alex and Kara and Sarah faintly smiled at that, sensing that she could trust Maggie’s judgement.

“I’m tired, Sarah”, Lucy then began to squirm next to Sarah, rubbing her eyes and barely able to sit upright after having eaten most of the food on her plate.

“I couldn’t find us a safe place to sleep last night, that’s why she’s so tired”, Sarah felt ashamed admitting this but Maggie quickly reassured her.

“It’s okay, we can head home now and Lucy can sleep there. You can get some rest too if you want to”, Maggie added before shooting Alex and Kara a quick text to meet her at home, telling them that she would bring someone with her.

 

When she got home, Alex and Kara were already waiting for her, a surprised look on their faces when they saw the little girl curled up in Maggie’s arms and the older girl trailing behind her.

“Hey guys, I told you I’d bring someone along”, Maggie shot them an almost shy smile before introducing the girls to them.

“This is Sarah, she’s thirteen”, she nodded towards the girl behind her, “and this is Lucy, she’s four. I found them roaming the streets after escaping from their group home and they needed a place to stay at”, Maggie quietly explained, not wanting to wake the girl that was fast asleep in her arms by now.

At first Alex and Kara were confused, they didn’t know why Maggie thought it would be a good idea to bring home two runaway kids but they also knew that she probably had a good reason and decided to accept her decision until they had the time to talk about the situation.

Kara was the first to respond to Maggie’s explanation and she smiled at Sarah before introducing herself and Alex followed her lead before looking at Maggie.

“I think you should settle her down first, she must be getting heavy in your arms”, Alex suggested as she looked at Lucy and Maggie nodded and carefully brought the girl into the guest bedroom and tucked her in, leaving the door ajar so she could find them when she woke up again.

“What about you, Sarah, do you want to take a nap too, or do you want to take a shower or anything?”, Alex asked, sensing that the girl felt a bit lost without Lucy by her side.

“A shower would be nice, but I don’t have any spare clothes”, Sarah blushed, looking down at the floor and feeling ashamed because her current clothes were so dirty already despite her always being so careful.

“It’s no problem, I’m sure we can find you something to wear for now, until we get around to get you some new clothes”, Alex smiled and without a word Kara took off to search for something that might fit the girl until she got her own clothes.

“Thank you”, Sarah whispered at that and gratefully took the towels and clothes Kara brought her a moment later and went into the bathroom to take a much needed shower.

Just then Maggie walked back into the living room and nervously looked at Alex and Kara who decided it was best to settle down on the couch to discuss their current situation.

“Why did you bring them here, Maggie”, Alex asked, still a little confused about Maggie’s decision and latest actions.

“I caught Sarah when she was stealing some food for herself and Lucy. When I bought them lunch she told me about the group home they escaped from and how they were treated there. Nobody even seems to be missing them, Alex, and I sure as hell won’t send them back into a system like that”, suddenly there was pain in Maggie’s voice, mixed with sadness, and Alex knew that this topic was hitting a nerve for her.

“Maggie is right, Alex, we can’t send them back to the place they ran from”, Kara agreed, upset that anyone could hurt these girls and wanting nothing more than protect them and keep them safe and warm.

“Alright, they can stay here for the time being, but we really need to work on a permanent solution. There might be no one who has reported them missing but we can’t just keep two kids in our home and not tell anyone about it, that would only get all of us into trouble”, Alex argued, and Maggie and Kara knew she was right, if they wanted to take care of the girls they would have to take legal steps before someone had the chance to throw them back into a system that had failed them once before.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back with chapter two and you will probably need tissues - also, thanks for the love for this story so far, you guys are the best!

_And they scream_   
_The worst things in life come free to us_

* * *

 

When Sarah came out of the shower some time later, wearing some slightly oversized but clean clothes, Maggie was on the phone with one of her colleagues, calling in a favour and asking them to give her information about the two girls so they could figure out what to do next to prevent them from going back into the system.

Sarah had just settled down on the couch, keeping enough distance between her and Kara, when they heard quiet crying coming from the guest bedroom, alerting them that Lucy must have woken up again.

“I will get her”, Sarah spoke up before walking over to the bedroom, gently taking Lucy into her arms when she saw her sitting on the bed and crying helplessly.

“It’s okay, Lu, you’re safe and I’m right here”, she quietly soothed her, knowing that the girl tended to get scared when Sarah wasn’t with her.

“Is everything okay?”, Alex asked from the doorway, a worried look on her face when she saw how upset Lucy seemed.

“Yeah, she just got scared for a moment, it’s alright”, Sara explained, rubbing Lucy’s back and standing up to take her back to the living room with her.

“How about we run her a nice bath to clean her up? We don’t have any clothes in her size but I’m sure an oversized shirt will do for now”, Alex offered, seeing that the girl was in desperate need of some cleaning up.

For a moment Sarah seemed conflicted and Alex wondered what was going on, until Sarah spoke up in a small voice.

“She’s a bit scared of water, I-“, she trailed off and it broke Alex’s heart to see the teenager so torn, sensing that there was more to Lucy’s fear of water.

“We’ll be careful, and you can always stay with her if that makes her feel better”, Alex shot her a soft smile and took them to the bathroom when Sarah nodded at her after a moment of contemplation.

Once the tub was halfway filled, Sarah carefully got Lucy out of her clothes and took her into her arms to settle her down in the water, even though Lucy was apprehensive to let go of her at first.

“Sarah, no”, she squeaked, trying to stay in Sarah’s arms and Alex knew she had to help Sarah calm Lucy down so they could clean her up.

“Hey Lucy, it’s okay, Sarah won’t go anywhere and I’m here to keep you safe too. Look, there are even bubbles in the bath”, Alex tried to distract the girl and when she finally began to relax she gave her some time to get used to the water before gently beginning to wash her with a wash cloth.

Washing her hair turned out to be another difficulty, but with Sarah’s help she managed to wash it without getting water in her eyes and Lucy was happy when she was finally being lifted out of the tub again and Alex wrapped a big, fluffy towel around her shivering form.

“Is fluffy”, she gently touched the soft fabric in awe and Alex smiled at her and nodded, sad that this seemed to be a first for the girl.

Putting her in one of Kara’s sleep shirts once she was dried off, Alex carried the girl over to the couch where Kara was already waiting for them with a brush in her hand, ready to brush out the girl’s unruly hair after it hadn’t been properly brushed in so long.

“Hey Lucy, nice shirt”, Kara smiled at the sight of Lucy in one of her shirts and the girl shyly smiled at that before looking at the brush in Kara’s hand with wide eyes.

“I’m gonna be real careful, promise”, Kara reassured her before getting to work, taking her time to brush out each tangle and knot she came across without hurting the girl, softly smiling at Alex when she noticed her intently watching them and smiling to herself.

Once Kara had detangled her hair they decided to let Sarah and Lucy watch some TV so they had some time to talk while both of them were occupied.

Sitting down at the bar of the kitchen island they watched the girls for a moment, both curled up on a couch with Lucy cuddled up against Sarah, before Maggie told Alex and Kara about what she had found out about them.

“Sarah has been in and out of group and foster homes for seven years now because her father was an alcoholic and abused her. He tried to fight for custody at first but eventually gave up when all attempts to reunite them failed because he never managed to realize his mistakes. Lucy has a similar story, her parents both neglected her while her father was abusive. She’s been in the system for almost two years now and when social workers found her she was severely malnourished and absolutely traumatized”, Maggie quietly explained, her voice giving away her sadness and anger at what these girls have been through at such a young age.

“Oh my god, this is awful”, Kara whispered with tears in her eyes and Alex instinctively took one of her hands in hers to give it a comforting squeeze.

“We can’t send them back”, Alex agreed, knowing that this group home wasn’t the right place for them after everything they have been through and after never having a real family in the first place.

“My colleagues went to the group home to see what was going on and find out why the girls were never reported missing and they saw that none of the people there really seemed to care about those kids so they’re being brought in now and the kids will be brought to different group homes until they hopefully find a more permanent solution. The good thing is that we can come in and apply for temporary custody until we can start the foster process if we want to. We’re lucky that they’re overwhelmed with the task of relocating those kids because it means they’re grateful for every helping hand”, Maggie explained, and they let the information sink in for a moment, especially the idea of offering the girls a more permanent home and applying to become their caretakers which would be a huge step all of them.

“They deserve a safe and loving home”, Kara quietly spoke up after a while, aware that this wouldn’t be easy but knowing she couldn’t bear sending them away either.

“Kara, this is a lot of responsibility”, Alex replied with a pained tone in her voice and Kara’s eyes filled with tears at that, feeling torn between protecting these girls and admitting that Alex was right, they couldn’t just decide to take these girls in without thinking about their future together.

“I know, Alex, I just- “, a few tears rolled down Kara’s cheeks and Alex pulled her into a hug, knowing this was hard for Kara to talk about. She too had been lost and alone until Alex’s parents had taken her in and even then it had been hard until Alex had finally warmed up to her and had helped her adjust to life on earth.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, Kara. I’m not saying that we shouldn’t do this, all I’m saying is that we need to think about the consequences of deciding to take care of children, especially when they have such troubled pasts. This is huge, Kara, and we can’t just jump into this without considering a few things first”, Alex gently explained, and Maggie nodded, aware that Kara tended to make decisions based on her emotions before properly thinking them through.

“Alex is right, we really need to make a plan if we want to go through with this but first we should probably ask Sarah and Lucy if they even want to stay with us for the time being”, Maggie reminded them, and Alex and Kara nodded before following Maggie’s lead and walking back over to the couch to talk to them about their plans.

“Hey girls, can we talk to you for a minute?”, Maggie drew their attention towards her and Sarah immediately shot her a solemn look before nodding, scared that they were going to be sent away again after seeing the women talk for so long and seeing Kara cry towards the end of their conversation.

“Some of my colleagues went to your old group home and the people who were supposed to take care of you are at the police station now. The kids who lived with you are being brought to other group homes now, where people properly take care of them”, Maggie updated them on the latest events and Sarah pulled Lucy towards her chest at that, afraid that they would have to go to yet another group home after their old one had been shut down.

“We know that you don’t want to go back to where you came from and to be honest, we wouldn’t want you to go back either, so we wondered if you would like to stay with us for now until we figure something out”, Maggie asked, hoping to offer the girls some comfort while everything else around them seemed to turn into a chaos.

“When are you going to send us back?”, Sarah asked a moment later, guessing that they wouldn’t want to have them around forever and wanting to protect Lucy from having her heart broken once again.

“We don’t want to send you back, Sarah. We want to give you a home, both of you, but we can’t promise you anything yet because legally it will be hard for us to get permanent custody of you. But I can promise you that we will make sure that you’re well cared for and we won’t let you go back into any of the group homes”, Alex gently explained, hoping Sarah understood the struggles that came with gaining custody of a child, let alone two children who were not related to each other.

“Okay”, Sarah simply whispered after a while, her voice still filled with uncertainty but Alex’s words comforting her a little, sensing that she was serious about what she had just told them.

“We stay here, Sarah?”, Lucy quietly asked, looking from Alex, Kara and Maggie to Sarah, who nodded at her with a soft smile.

“Yes, Lu, we’re gonna stay here for now”, she hugged Lucy for a moment before Alex spoke up once more, to calm Lucy down as well.

“We’re going to keep you here for as long as we can”, Alex reassured them both and Kara, who was sitting next to her, smiled at that, because she knew it meant that Alex was going to fight for these two girls just as hard.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Between homework and deadlines and tests I miraculously managed to write this chapter and I'm hoping to wrap this story up within the next one or two chapters. For now enjoy reading and feedback and suggestions are really appreciated :)

The following morning they were woken by the sounds of quiet voices coming from the room next door, mixed with crying and footsteps on the floor. Alex was the first one to get up and check what was going on, finding a crying Lucy standing next to Sarah who was removing the sheet from the bed they were sharing.

“Hey you two, what is wrong?”, Alex asked and Lucy turned to her with wide eyes, crying even harder when she saw the woman standing in the doorway of the room.

“I’m sorry”, she desperately started to sob and Alex immediately grew worried, wondering what was upsetting the girl so much.

“She wet the bed”, Sarah quietly explained, the sheet in her hands, afraid that Alex would get angry now.

“Hey, that’s no big deal, really! We can put the sheet in the washing machine and get you a fresh one, okay?”, Alex tried her best to soothe the girls, taking the sheet from Sarah to wash it while Kara and Maggie walked into the room after hearing what had happened.

“Come on Lucy, let’s get you cleaned up too, okay?”, Kara softly spoke to the frightened girl who hesitantly nodded and took Kara’s hand to follow her into the bathroom.

“We really need to buy them clothes today”, Maggie quietly told Kara who nodded in turn, aware that they were running out of clean clothes to put the girls in.

Kara did her best to be gentle with Lucy and not scare her any further and she was grateful when Maggie managed to distract her a little, telling her about the plans for their day and how she would get to pick something she liked.

“Can I have a pretty dress, too?”, her eyes sparkled at the prospect, though she was hesitant because she wasn’t sure if she would really be allowed to get a dress as well.

“Of course, we are going to buy the prettiest dress we can find”, Kara smiled at Lucy who was now dressed again, and Maggie smiled at Kara, in awe at how gentle and loving Kara was with the little girl.

When they exited the bathroom, Alex was already preparing breakfast for them and Sarah was sitting at the kitchen island, watching Alex and quietly drinking the hot chocolate Alex had already made for her and Lucy.

“Hey Lucy, your hot chocolate is already waiting for you”, Alex smiled and Kara helped the girl onto one of the stools before sitting down next to her while Maggie took a seat next to Sarah.

“We’re going to have to go to the police station before we can go shopping but I’m sure it’s not going to take us too long”, Maggie told the girls and saw Sarah stiffen at that, scared that someone would take them away from the one place they felt safe at after all.

“Don’t worry, we’re just gonna fill out some paperwork to make everything legal, they’re not gonna send you back to your group home”, Maggie reassured her, and Sarah relaxed at her words, relieved to hear that they seemed to be serious about their plans to keep them for longer.

 

Getting them all ready and out of the house took longer than expected but they eventually made it to the police station where one of Maggie’s colleagues was already waiting for them.

“Hey Maggie, I already got the papers for you, you just need to sign them”, her colleague pointed towards his desk and Maggie gratefully nodded at him, glad that they didn’t have to go through loads of papers with the girls accompanying them.

“Thanks, Ben, I really appreciate it”, Maggie shot him a quick smile before flipping through the pages and signing the papers, handing it to Alex and Kara so they could do the same.

“I’m just glad the girls have a good place to stay at, especially after seeing that poor excuse of a group home”, Ben nodded in acknowledgement and took the papers from Kara once she had signed them, wishing them a good day when they left the station again.

 

“Now, who’s ready to do some shopping?”, Kara grinned at the girls and Lucy nodded enthusiastically while Sarah gave a small nod in return.

While all three of them didn’t have much of an idea what exactly they would need, they were sure they would be able to get some basics that would get them through the next days until they figured out what else they were missing.

Going to the mall seemed to be the best solution and soon enough they found themselves immersed in looking at all kinds of different clothes, Maggie and Kara helping Lucy pick some favourites while Alex took Sarah to the teenage section to find some outfits she would like.

At first Lucy was hesitant to choose the things she liked but eventually she gathered some courage and started exploring the store, happily handing Kara more and more dresses while Maggie reminded Kara that they would need some basics too because Lucy couldn’t just live in dresses and skirts.

“Alex, look, I got pretty dresses”, Lucy almost stumbled over her words when they met up with Alex and Sarah once again and Alex smiled back at her, telling her that she had picked some really nice dresses to wear.

“Please tell me you got more than just dresses for her”, Alex shot a pointed look towards Kara, who was more than ready to defend herself.

“But have you seen just how many cute dresses they have for little girls”, Kara tried to argument with a pout on her lips and Maggie shook her head and chuckled, knowing that they would have to keep Kara from buying more dresses in the future.

“Don’t worry, Alex, I knocked some sense into her and reminded her that Lucy needs other stuff too”, Maggie reassured Alex who just shook her head before heading to the checkout area to pay for the clothes.

Their next stop was a toy store that also offered some decoration and furniture and they tried to find some things that would make the guest bedroom look more like a kids room, even though they knew that them sharing a room was only a temporary solution.

While Sarah helped Lucy pick some stuffed animals and toys, Alex, Kara and Maggie went looking for everything else and they hoped to find some things that would fit both a little girl and a teenager.

“If they’re going to stay with us for longer we really need to find a bigger place because they can’t share a room forever”, Maggie thoughtfully spoke up while scanning the shelves and Alex and Kara nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, but I think at the moment it’s better if they share a room. This is all so new to them and they find comfort in each other, so I think that for now they feel safer together”, Alex reasoned and thought about how the girls were still clinging to each other even if they had a stable home now.

Before either of them had the chance to add another thought, Lucy came running towards them with her arms full of stuffed animals, almost dropping them when she came to a halt in front of Kara, who was smiling at the sight.

“Oh hey there, I see you found some things you like”, Kara smiled at Lucy, who frantically nodded in reply, trying to keep the stuffed animals close to her.

“She doesn’t need to have _all_ of them”, Sarah began to interject, thinking that the women would get angry at Lucy for wanting so many things.

“It’s alright, Sarah, she can have them if she wants to, it’s no problem. Though I suggest we get those into the cart before they all fall down”, Alex quickly calmed Sarah’s fears and helped Lucy put everything into their cart before asking Sarah if there was anything she still needed or wanted.

“I don’t really need anything”, Sarah began but when she saw Alex gently smiling at her she added “just…maybe, a few books?”, she asked, not wanting to burden anyone financially with something that wasn’t a necessity.

“Books sound good! I’m sure we can find some for Lucy too, let’s go to the book section then”, Alex encouraged Sarah who shyly nodded in reply before following them and soon enough she was busy looking at different books, while the others looked for books Lucy might enjoy.

Seeing that Sarah was reluctant to pick more than a few books, Alex decided to add some more books to their cart to put them into their shelf for Sarah to read once she had finished the ones she had chosen.

After that they decided to get lunch since they were all starving and once they were all busy eating, Alex softly smiled at the people surrounding her, thinking that maybe they could become a real family after all.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My priorities are about as straight as I am, so here we are with a new chapter because apparently writing on your research paper is a lot less fun than writing more fanfiction (but hey, I never said I was good at adulting or anything) - so yeah, enjoy this piece of procrastination!

_I'm not looking for somebody_   
_With some superhuman gifts_   
_Some superhero_   
_Some fairytale bliss_   
_Just something I can turn to_   
_Somebody I can miss_

* * *

 

Once the girls were in bed that night, Alex, Kara and Maggie sat down to discuss their next steps, hoping to be able to set up some sort of routine for the girls and realizing that they both would need to go back to school as soon as possible.

“I know we can split our time and look after the girls, but I really think we should look into finding a suitable school for them. Maybe there’s a school with an integrated preschool, that way they’re still close to each other and we don’t have different pick up places”, Maggie suggested, and Alex nodded while Kara thoughtfully bit her bottom lip, contemplating Maggie’s words and wondering if it was really the right thing to do.

“Are you sure they’re ready to go back to school? I mean, maybe we could- “, Kara trailed off, but deep down knew that they all had jobs to get back to and that they couldn’t stay home with the girls forever.

“I think the routine will help them and one of us can always pick them up in the afternoon and spend some time with them, that way they can still settle in and we can go back to work”, Alex soothed Kara’s fears and started looking up schools, remembering that there was one near the DEO, which would make their lives a lot easier.

“The school that’s down the street from the DEO actually sounds pretty good. They offer half and full days and have a lot of extracurricular activities the kids can choose from”, Alex told Maggie and Kara what she had found on their homepage and they agreed on calling the school the next day and showing it to the girls to see if they would like it there, hoping the school was as good as it sounded on the internet.

-

The next morning Alex called the school while Maggie told the girls about their plans and while Sarah didn’t quite look happy about going back to school, Lucy seemed downright scared and started clinging onto Sarah, not wanting to be away from her or the women she had started to trust throughout the past few days.

“Sarah will still be at the same school as you, sweetie, and I’m sure you’re gonna like it there”, Kara encouraged her, but Lucy seemed still unsure, not ready to leave the safety of their newfound home yet.

“The school agreed to meeting us today and offered to let the girls take a look into their classes”, Alex announced just then and Lucy buried her face in Sarah’s shirt but eventually agreed to come along as long as Sarah was with her, which would be the case anyway.

Arriving at the school they met up with the principal and two teachers were ready to take Sarah and Lucy to their classrooms and introduce them to the other students, but it took a few minutes until Lucy was ready to go with the teacher after being reassured that they wouldn’t go home without her and would pick her up again once they had finished talking to the principal.

At first the principal, a woman in her late forties, was a little confused about their family constellation but Maggie was quick in explaining it to her and telling her about the girl’s backgrounds.

“They were both in the foster system before they came to us and now we’re looking to find a new school for them where they feel safe and can stay close to each other”, Maggie told the woman who nodded and smiled at the three women in front of her, understanding their situation and offering both girls spots at their school.

“If the girls like it here I’m sure they can start classes next week. It’s not optimal because it’s the middle of the school year but especially Sarah can always repeat the year if she needs more time to adjust”, she offered and especially Alex seemed relieved that there was no pressure on them to adjust right away.

“That sounds great, we really appreciate your understanding and support”, Alex smiled but before any of them could say anything else they were interrupted by cries coming from the door behind them and when they turned around they saw Lucy standing next to the teacher, clutching her bunny to her chest and crying bitterly.

“She seemed to be okay for a while but then suddenly started crying and wanted nothing more than to get back to you”, the teacher gently explained, and Kara immediately got up and took Lucy in her arms, softly pressing her head against her chest and holding her close while Lucy cried into her shirt.

“It’s okay sweetie, we’re right here”, Kara hushed her and sadly looked up at Alex and Maggie, who were equally heartbroken at the sight.

“I’m sorry if she caused any trouble, she’s not doing very well with changes yet”, Alex quietly explained, and the teacher nodded in understanding, assuring her that they would give Lucy the time she needed to settle into the new environment.

“Hey sweetie, how about we pick up Sarah now to go back home”, Kara told Lucy once they said their goodbyes and the principal had told them where they would find Sarah’s classroom and Lucy simply nodded into her chest, glad that she would get to see Sarah again after being so upset about their separation.

Once they had collected Sarah they went back to the car and on the drive back home Alex asked Sarah how she had liked the school, to which Sarah had quietly told them that it didn’t seem all that bad, something they all considered a success, considering where the girls were coming from.

Back at home Kara settled Lucy down for a nap and back in the living room they all sat down on the couch while Kara took a seat on the armchair next to it, knowing now would be a good time to tell Sarah about something she needed to know if she was going to stay with them more permanently.

“Sarah, there’s something else we need to tell you”, Alex began, knowing what Kara wanted to tell and and trying to find the right words to explain it to the girl.

Hearing those words Sarah tensed up, afraid of what they were about to tell her, but Maggie gently put a hand on her shoulder and calmed her down, letting her know that nothing bad was going to happen to her or Lucy.

“Lucy is still too young for this but we feel like you deserve to know the whole truth because it will inevitably affect your life too”, Alex momentarily paused and took a deep breath before continuing, “the thing is, Kara wasn’t actually born on earth.  She was born on Krypton and only came to earth when she was a little older”, she carefully explained and they all held their breaths, waiting for Sarah to process this new piece of information.

“Wait, so you’re saying, Kara is from the same planet that Superman came from?”, Sarah stared at them with wide eyes, trying to put together the pieces and make sense of the whole situation.

“Well, yeah, he’s actually my cousin, so-“, Kara smirked, nervously fiddling with her fingers and hoping Sarah wouldn’t freak out now.

“You’re Supergirl”, Sarah blurted out and Kara slowly nodded at that, not surprised that Sarah had figured it out so fast.

“Yeah, I am. Is that- is that okay for you? I mean, you obviously can’t tell anyone about this, but I’m away a lot and well, I have my powers that I sometimes use and I wouldn’t want you to freak out or something- “, Kara now began to ramble but cut herself off when Alex silently reminded her to take a breath.

“It’s- yeah, I guess it’s…alright? I mean, that’s, wow, yeah, that’s all”, Sarah was a little overwhelmed and didn’t quite know what to make of this, but she wasn’t opposed to the idea either and that was already a good thing for them.

“I know it’s a lot to take in but we really think you deserve to know about this and we know Lucy isn’t quite old enough yet to keep this kind of secret, so we will have to wait until she’s ready to understand what this means and can keep it to herself”, Alex told Sarah, who nodded in reply before turning to Kara once again.

“So you have a lot of cool powers, huh?”, she asked and Kara laughed at that before saying “oh, you have _no idea_ just how cool they are”.


End file.
